We are proud to introduce to Missouri -- the wines of Le Cirque....
2010 Le Cirque Grenache Gris....$15.99
The Le Cirque 2010 Grenache Gris - which I tasted just after its winter bottling - smells alluringly of iris and honeysuckle atop ripe melons and pineapple. Luscious and infectiously juicy, it saturates the palate with watermelon, Persian melon, and pineapple, mingled with walnut oil, peat, crushed stone, and saliva-liberating salinity, all of which collaborate on an exuberant finish, delivering an amazing value that will certainly continue to satisfy for at least a couple of years.
Rated 90/100 The Wine Advocate
2010 Le Cirque "Le Cirque Red"....$15.99
The freshly-bottled 2010 Le Cirque red - which I refer to as "Le Cirque" since it is otherwise a vin de pays with no name; although I could refer to "50% Carignan, 25% Mourvedre, 25% Syrah" as they appear prominently on the wrap-around label, and despite my having reason to believe there's some Grenache here, too - reached me just as this report was going to press. "I'm surprised that this has evolved enough to be bottled already," remarked Kravitz. "I thought it would be September before I blended it." I'd be able to drink quite a bit of this by September! Here are the virtues of the 2010 vintage on tasty display: impeccably ripe but vivacious fruit (above all red raspberry and cassis) accompanied by enticingly salty minerality; pungent, resinous impingement of rosemary and black pepper; and a slight, but by no means unattractive, reductive suggestion of smoked meats. I'm willing to assume that the alcohol level is 14.5% as labeled, but given the levity and infectious juiciness of a finish free from heat or roughness, I would have found it easier to believe this harbored 13.5%. My suspicion is that this superb value will be best drunk over the next couple of years, but there's really no telling, given no track record.
Rated 90/100 The Wine Advocate
2010 Le Cirque Rose.....$12.99
From Grenache (around 10% of it Gris) and Syrah, the Le Cirque 2010 Rose is distinctively suggestive of tart cherry, prickly pear, and pineapple; is lush yet bright, possessed of invigorating tactile impingement suggesting citrus zest, red fruit skins, pineapple core; and crystalline minerality; and introduces a rich element of nut oils as well as a foundation of wet stone in its vibrant, refreshing finish. Quite distinct from any other pink wine you will have tasted, this outstanding value should be worth pursuing over the next 6-9 months. (And it's not a rose to confine to warm-weather consumption.)
Rated 89/100 The Wine Advocate
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